Compassioun

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Deep sympathy and a desire to ease the suffering of another person or creature
2. A feeling of heartfelt sorrow for someone's misfortune that moves a person to help
3. The tender pity one feels toward others in distress, often prompting kindness or mercy

Etymology: Middle English "compassioun" came into English from Old French "compassion," which itself was borrowed from Late Latin "compassio," built from "com-" (together) and "pati" (to suffer). The literal sense is "suffering with," and the word's core idea has stayed close to that original image: feeling another's pain alongside them. The Middle English spelling "compassioun" reflects the Anglo-Norman and Old French pronunciation of the word, with the "-ioun" ending that later shifted toward the modern "-ion." Writers of that period often used the word in religious and moral contexts, where suffering with another was regarded as a Christian virtue. Like "passion," the word shares the Latin verb "pati," so the two English words are cousins that took different paths: "passion" once meant suffering or enduring, while "compassion" kept the sense of shared feeling.